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I just placed an order on a new Privia. I got the matching stand and triple pedal set I got a great deal on it. I paid 601 shipped for everything

Well I just wanted to thank everyone. I hope to be a valid and helpful member here in time and help others. You are all a great group.

Hey guys and gal's.

I'm new to piano and digital pianos. So I really don't have a lot of reference when playing w/ or touching pianos. I have been meaning to buy one for many years now as I want to take some lessons and learn to play. This being said my only times using of a digital or acoustic piano was 20 years ago playing on my grandmothers grand piano during the holidays. This was an acoustic piano and I used to have little basic keyboard as a key made completely of plastic they bought me for Christmas.

I know I want something that feels realistic because some day I will prob end up buying a nice acoustic piano. I think they look beautiful.

So just doing a few quick google searches I have been reading things like the yamaha p series and the casio Priva px series. To me they look and almost feel the same. I don't enough about them to tell which is the most realistic and for my purpose probably doesn't matter much..

Now to the question. This is going to be a piano for me to play around with, not going to be gigging or lugging it around but learning on it. What is important is something that will help me transistion to a good acoustic in the future, feel wise and sound wise (subjective I know). I do not want to spend tons of money on this project because it could turn out the piano isn't for me and may end up being something I let the kid learn on in the future w/ lessons.

So im looking at the p35 (seems great at around 450 bucks), sounds good, I know the poly count being 35ish is alot less then its bigger brother but is this something a greenhorn like me will ever even notice or use? I only care about the sound of the grand piano, I also want to note I have a very nice set of studio krk monitors I can hook up to this. I don't know what other digital piano brands compare. For example I know, or think I know the p105 would be like the privia px 150. What would be casio's version be to the p35? From what I mentioned my needs are is there a real reason to spend the extra 150 on a higher end digital piano?

I guess all in all im looking for best bang for buck, feel and sound around 500 range give or take.

Sound wise I like deep lower tones more then the higher tones. So for say a tune like moonlight sonata where it feels deeper then say the entertainer.. But like I said im a complete green horn here :p So who knows if I know what im talking about. I hope this gives an idea of what im looking for.. Good powerful sounds. What I liked about the p35 I found in this video. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AykGH6PpO84 fast forward to 5:40 mins. I loved the sound of it with my head phones on.. But it could jsut be the song.. I just don't know enough about the instruments.

I know I want something that feels realistic because some day I will prob end up buying a nice acoustic piano

If you want the closest thing to a real piano, don't choose among the cheapest. P-35 is a very crippled piano. It has the minimum Yamaha quality and I'm sure it has its marketplace but I wouldn't buy it unless I really couldn't afford more.

I would choose something like a 4xx series from Yamaha (not my favourites but they worth a try, they still have many fans and very high quality), a Kawai CN or CA series or a Roland 500 series. My favourite is Roland but that's a complete matter of taste, try and decide which one is your favourite, not someone else's

The Casio PX-150 looks great for the price but have in account that:

- It lacks complex resonance algorithms that emulate the real behaviour of an acoustic piano- It has a weak amp

Hey guys thanks for the quick reply. I do want to point out to me, in a store I have looked at they fell alot alike to me. I dont notice alot of the differences. This is a starter piano for me. My only issue w/ spending alot of money up front is my fear of not liking the piano for more then anything other then a hobby.

I def agree with you get what you pay for. Here is my big question. Money really isn't my biggest issue, its more bang for buck. I can buy a ferrari to goto work each day or I can buy a camery for example. They both get the job, they both seem nice but the ferrari is overkill for the purpose needed.So take myself as an example I play chopsticks and feel like im doing something well. Thats about the best I can play right now. With that being said me blasting away on chopstick on a 450 to 500 dollar dp vs a 2000 dp, is it going to be night and day difference? That's really what im getting at.

In my future I want to buy a real acoustic piano for my new home. For the looks and the sound of it.

My digital piano is something I can more or less "bang around on" But do want to transition to an acoustic some day. I will def look in to the models suggest. I have never even heard of kawai CN until just now so im def learning.

So im looking at the p35 (seems great at around 450 bucks), sounds good, I know the poly count being 35ish is alot less then its bigger brother but is this something a greenhorn like me will ever even notice or use?

No, I wouldn't worry about that.

Originally Posted By: 4g63mr

I don't know what other digital piano brands compare. For example I know, or think I know the p105 would be like the privia px 150. What would be casio's version be to the p35?

If you're talking about price comparisons, the Casio below the PX150 is the CDP-120.

My only issue w/ spending alot of money up front is my fear of not liking the piano for more then anything other then a hobby.[...] With that being said me blasting away on chopstick on a 450 to 500 dollar dp vs a 2000 dp, is it going to be night and day difference? That's really what im getting at.

That's, in my humble opinion, one of the most common mistakes committed while beginning piano (the other big one is beginning without a teacher of with a bad one...). That is, for the fear of quitting in the future, buying a cheap non responsive, non motivating piano, paradoxically there are millions of people in the world who quit and there's no hobby anymore, maybe prematurely, and we can only ask ourselves what percentage of crappy pianos are responsible of this. I think a good piano is very motivational. A bad one (no mater it is acoustic or digital) can be demoralizing. So my advice to my pupils (or their parents....) is not to buy the cheapest one. Unfortunately some of them doesn't follow my advice and the pupils feel frustrated when practice with their instrument at home.

The fact you play today chopsticks doesn't mean in the future you will not improve and play a wider repertoire but a bad piano could stop your advances or demotivate you.

I'm not saying buying a P-105 or a Px-150 is a bad buy. I bought a Px-135 but it's not my main practice instrument at all. Yes, it's a expensive profession and an expensive hobby... but it's a sublime one. I think it's worth every cent invested on it

CarloPianoThank you again for the reply. You hit on what I started to reflect and think about as I typed my first reply. I may be playing chopsticks now but a year from now playing much more complex piece.

Im still in a research stage. I hope to get my hands on a some more digital pianos in my area.. I live in Orlando fl so we have alot of stores to explore.

I just want to go into some of these stores w/ a little more knowledge. I have a bad habbit of letting my self get sold on something I don't need alot of the time. That is something I was a bit worried about. Like I said before I played with a few at the local guitar center and they all "felt" alot alike. It was very loud in the store so I couldnt get feel for the sound of the pianos.

I don't know what other digital piano brands compare. For example I know, or think I know the p105 would be like the privia px 150. What would be casio's version be to the p35?

If you're talking about price comparisons, the Casio below the PX150 is the CDP-120.[/quote]

I guess I mean price and style. It maybe an unfair comparison. I look at it again, almost like cars. One might compare a camery and honda accord, same class and price range. (lol im not even a car guy just first thing that popped into my mind). I know so little about digital pianos i am prob asking the wrong questions.

Im mostly a drummer and trumpet player in the past, I always played drums and or trumpet. Drums = hobby and trumpet was something I took lessons on and played in concert settings growing up. Piano is something I have always loved, just never had lessons.

I mentioned before when I was younger I had an cheap keyboard. Prob sounds terrible to todays technology but I loved machine and played it until the keys fell off. I just never got to develop on it due to drums and trumpet.

When I was young I was a handy me down kind of guy. My first drums were just short of a cans with drum heads, old old old pearl set. Sound decent at best but I played the heck out of them. Then over the years bought better sets. Then got into digital drums and both a cheap set and a very nice hart dynamics set. I play my cheap set the most, just easier for me to get to, set up etc. For practice it does the trick. I dont know if this transitions well with pianos or not.

I don't know if im rambling or not.. Im just thinking more outloud here.

I actually had piano lessons for a few years when I was very young (early teens), and then stopped because I was lazy. However I never lost my love for music (all kinds). 20 years passed and one day 3 years go, I got motivated to take up piano again. I bought a Casio Privia PX-110. I tinkered around with it, but then it just sat by hardly used. Another year passed before I got inspired by youtube performances of some pianists and some youtube lessons. I got really motivated to learn properly and dedicate some time regularly to play a piece I really wanted to learn. I got a lot better and more encouraged as I persisted. Today, I can play pieces that I could never have dreamed even 2 years ago.

However the downside is, I am bitten by the bug, and contemplating spending 10x the money I spent on the Casio for a real or hybrid piano!

So, I guess my advice is a little bit different.- You don't need a great piano to be inspired, it can come from other sources.

- It is possible to get a pretty acceptable piano for a low price these days

- I would pay for the key action, not for sounds or gizmos, especially because it is possible to hook up any piano capable of MIDI out to a laptop that will run software piano sounds that will blow away ANY digital piano on the market, even the very high end ones. (In fact this is what I'm doing now)

- If it's classical music that you like, I would also suggest you pay attention to the type of pedals that will come with the piano. It will be best to have a 3 pedal system with preferably a multi-level sustain pedal, not a switch type. However you may not get this on cheaper models. (But it's not crucial, the keyboard action is more important)

- You can always upgrade later if you get bitten by the bug. However, like anything in life, you only get back what you put in, and it will take a lot of regular effort and motivation to be good at it.

Acca, thank you so much. I think you and I see kind of eye to eye on this. I know my self, I love music. Im not the best at it but I love it. I love to play what I can and I do want to develop and learn more.

You said something I mention to people I help teach drumming to. Alot of apartment dwellers they cant have acoustic sets and college age kids, so they cant afford a 5k drum set. I always advise getting something that "feels" real. You can get a better module later or midi it to a computer and have LOADS of sounds. Its a trigger and feel that are important.

Now with that said Carlo made alot of sense, in saving me money in the long run. Also in the sense alot of people buy cheap, play cheap and never get that zest of a real machine.

Im debating my bottom line price. I am still thinking alot on it. Like I said research stage at this point.

If it's classical music that you like, I would also suggest you pay attention to the type of pedals that will come with the piano. It will be best to have a 3 pedal system with preferably a multi-level sustain pedal

For someone at chopsticks level, I don't think the additional pedals are important enough to be a factor in the decision.

Update. I just got back home from my local guitar center. I got a chance to feel and play on the PX 150, 350, and yamaha p35 and 105.

To me these all felt the same more or less. I mean I could feel the texture difference in the keys but the action on them felt alot alike. I think I liked the privias action just a hair better but not much, I didn't care for the textured feel. In the end however they all kinda over all felt the same and sounded alot alike to me.

I see more of what carlo was saying, they didn't have that confidence building feel to them. Reminded me of an expensive toy.

I plan to goto a piano store tomorrow and feel some real acoustic pianos and a retailer that sells the Roland digital pianos so I can feel and hear the difference.

After playing the yamahas and casio's in guitar center I felt they were "okay". I have a feeling if I get a cheaper DP I will end up wishing I spent more on the investment.

Well don't be afraid to try out even the "most expensive" models. Each manufacturer only has a couple of types of keyboard actions that they reuse for many many models, differentiated only by the electronics feature set, cabinetry, speakers, etc. If you find one that you like, you can then do research on the type of keyboard it is, and see if they sell it in a cheaper model (which can be in a totally different "line").

My other thought is to definitely try out an acoustic, because that's the real benchmark. Don't pay attention to the sound, pay attention to the effort and feedback (across the whole travel), how it feels when it hits the bottom, and how it feels when playing lightly, firmly, slowly and quickly.

But if you are looking for a keyboard to "blow you away", you will be disappointed. To be honest, if you are just starting to learn the piano, the initial stages (which can take years!) just involve trying to get fingerings, arm motions, accuracy, coordination, hand positioning, finger strength and techniques like this right. Nuances will only come later.

That's why I wouldn't feel pressured to spend too much on an initial instrument. Once you have developed a better feel, you can always sell this one or relegate it to a midi controller for composition/recording and buy something with that better understanding of what you want. (And you will not lose as much money, as these things will not hold value at all!)

I have been downplaying the sounds a lot, but that's not because I don't think it's important, in fact I think it's more important than the keyboard feel! But the problem is, none of the digital piano sounds, not even the $10000 ones, hold a candle to software sounds especially if you are talking about piano sounds. This is because manufacturers are reluctant to change from decades old electronics.

But luckily there is a cheap solution to this, which is to plug the MIDI signals into a computer. When I did this, combined with the right software/sounds, my keyboard suddenly felt SO much better, even though the mechanical action has not changed at all.

Yea I agree w/ what your saying. Really until I go in and start to play with some of the other pianos to get a feel its all just subjective to me atm. Honestly anything is better then what I have atm, an ipad :p

The onboard speakers mean little to nothing to me as I will have headphones or using my monitors for the sound. I just need a good feel so I can practice and see where the hobby takes me.

I spent the afternoon listening to HP 500 series roland sounds and videos. I gotta say I saw one video of an hp 307 that blew my mind. Though I think it should the cost sure is up there.

Its just at the moment I cant justify the cost of the HP 500 series. That is something WAY out of my price range I am comfortable spending. I would say 1000 max atm. The issue im having is the 8 and $900 digital pianos, I couldnt tell the difference in the 4 and $500 digital pianos. When I played "well" poked at them in the music store. I didn't really feel comfortable playing around with the really pricey units so I just kind of felt the keys a bit.

In the future I am 100% sure I will notice the difference and it maybe something I invest in.

Right now I just cant seem to stomach several thousand dollars for a first time buy. Plus the fact im a bit sticker shocked at the prices. I don't want to finance anything on this or use credit card, I like to buy in cash unless I have to i.e. buying a home or car. That being said unless im saving pennies I don't want to drop the money on the roland hp 500 series atm.

BTW sorry about the grammer or spelling mistakes, I have been typing these replies on an ipad and tend to not proof read.

I'll give the unspoken side. Plenty of people do spend too much. I know of three people personally that bought instruments in the past year or two. One bought a very nice acoustic piano for the wife, it hasn't been touched. Another bought about $6000 worth of computer related gear for his guitars. When I asked him about, same thing, hasn't had time to touch it. For him, the shopping and buying was the fun part, not the application. A third also bought for the wife, hasn't been touched.

Keep in mind that this an enthusiast forum. The average beginner quits after 2 years. Those that quit don't post, don't visit. That 2 years factors in mostly kids. I have seen more than a few adults in my short time on the forum that are enthusiastic about buying a new instrument, often for an amount of money that is a strain for their personal budget. Then a few updates from them, then sometimes posts about injuries or discouragement, then sometimes nothing. I wonder if they quit?

Yes, for sure some do. Hard to say if any particular person will be in that group. No one that starts up, thinks they are going to quit. How much time is budgeted? How about lessons?

I am all for spending on musical instruments if that is what a person wants to do. However, a new beginner may or may not like it, may or may not get injured.

Piano can be a very expensive hobby for some. Lessons and time are much more costly than beginner instruments. It can all be well worth it, but I believe there is such a thing as spending too much.

If a person can't tell the difference, there is nothing wrong with a starter instrument. It would be great if all of us had the funds for what an enthusiast would consider a decent instrument. However, it is not always the case.

Each person has their own monetary budget, their own budget of time as well. Save some of the money for lessons, that will often make more of a difference than the instrument.

What do you guys think of the Kawai EP3. Lots of good reviews. Most reviews say it has a great feel and the sound is very good.

For whatever reason the EP3 has not been talked about all that much over the last few years. I guess because it competes directly with the Yamaha P155, which is pretty much always cheaper and more easily available, so the P155 gets recommended to people who want a decent piano for the very least amount of money possible.

One of our forum members, pv88, owns an EP3 and has often mentioned how much he likes it. He's had a lot of digitals so his opinion has a certain statistical significance. Based on what he and others have said, it appears to me that it is better than the P155 in a number of ways. The problem is that, like you, I have never seen one in real life. They aren't that easy to come by. And the action it features isn't in a lot of other pianos, so it's not easy to find even the same action to test somewhere.

If I had to buy sight unseen using only reviews and had only like a grand to spent, I'd very likely look to the EP3.

Sandtiger thank you for the post. Very well written I have to admit I feel a lot better after reading it. As of right now I'm setting my new budget at around 1000 max. I didn't like the feel of the yamaha and casio pianos I got to try out. Something didn't feel right. Could also been from me being bashful and not wanting to feel like a complete moron poking at keys. Couple of reasons for my budget. A. My other half may kill me if I spend more then that considering I have several thousand tied up in just one of my e drum kits. She still thinks 1000 is nuts but knows my joy of music. B. I don't know how much or far I will go with piano. Don't get me wrong I love piano I just don't have loads of time with juggling work full time, working on my masters in biomedical engineering, and family. Music is a hobby for me. I play for mostly myself. It's how I cope with stress and how I ground myself.

That being said, do I want lessons? You bet I do. Do I have time atm? Not really. So I will be teaching my self until I have more time.

Oh you can add me to that list of spending to much and not using it. I have a very nice hart dynamic custom e drum kit, spent loads of money over time on this kit. I have it covered up most of the time or in the case.... When I play e drums with head phones on I tend to grab my simple roland entry level td 3 kit. It's fast to set up, plays nice and I don't fear breaking it lol.

Gvfarns thank you as well.I found the ep3 while looking at kawais website. I enjoyed the sound in the videos and the few reviews I found all seem to say its very very close to the feel of kawai acoustic pianos.

As of now I'm leaning in that direction. I also found a dealer of kawai pianos acoustic and digital in my area. I plan to see them this weekend.

I also found a dealer of kawai pianos acoustic and digital in my area. I plan to see them this weekend.

4g63mr, may I recommend that you contact the dealer before visiting to ensure that they have the instrument you're interested available to play. The EP3 is typically sold by online/big-box music stores, while independent Kawai dealers will sell the ES6 or ES7.

Well reguardless if they have the models I'm looking at, I still want to get a chance to feel and play a higher end kawai piano plus it will be good to talk to an expert in person. This will answer my true question of will I, my self be able to tell the difference.

I didn't like the feel of the yamaha and casio pianos I got to try out.

It is very important to take note of the model numbers and not judge an entire brand based on one model. In the under-$1000 range, the Yamaha P-35/P-95/P-105 feel very different from the P-155/CP-33. And the Casio PX-150/PX-350 feel very different from the PX-130/PX-330 or CDP-120. Personally, I like the Casio PX-150/PX-350 action best of all those I mentioned... and I like the other Casios least.

Update: I went to a local music store and got a chance to play some really really nice digital pianos. I fell inlove w/ two. I love the piano sounds and feel of the action on ALL the kawai DP.

However I found a feature on some of the upper end Yamaha digital pianos I fell inlove with. They have some teach you piano feature. I was amazed how well this worked and how much fun I had playing. To bad the piano was 18k ahahahahaa.

I got to play both CN and CS series kawai and LOVE them. If kawai had a teaching feature that the yamaha had I would buy one instantly.

Anyways does anyone know if yamaha or any other brand has a lower priced digital piano with the teach you to play feature? The guy at the store said that yamaha has a CVP-501 that does this feature but didnt have any in stock to show me.

If anyone knows what im talking about and could recomind something like that but doesn't cost a fortune I would be greatful.

As of right now the kawai cn23 I played today is at the top of my list of "nice" digital pianos. Its more then I wanted to spend but damn that piano was nice. I loved the sound and the action. I dont really like the style of its looks but that's okay. I can't have it all.

If no recommendations of another piano with this feature does anyone know of software that would work with an ipad or laptop to help learn?

I checked every store in my location. Nobody has a kawai ep3. I'm really interested if anyone can tell me if the action on the ep3 is close or the same as the cn23. The kawai were by far my favorite action. From the extremely high priced versions down to the cn23.

Another issue I want to be able to take this on a road trip if I go out of town for a week for work. So I can headphone up and play in a hotel at nights.

However I found a feature on some of the upper end Yamaha digital pianos I fell inlove with. They have some teach you piano feature. To bad the piano was 18k ahahahahaa.

Anyways does anyone know if yamaha or any other brand has a lower priced digital piano with the teach you to play feature? The guy at the store said that yamaha has a CVP-501 that does this feature but didnt have any in stock to show me.

Roland has educational pianos - HPi-6F and 7F. 6F should cost just over 3K.

i-pad has educational app for it, but I do not know if it works with all digital pianos (I mean if you can connect it to a piano)

When I last time saw prices, I couldn´t imagine who would be the customer, a beginner needing the educational feature, but willing to pay that extremly high price of an high-end DP. If as a beginner willing to spend money for a professional high-end DP, then it might be a better choice to go for the HP-507 and an iPad. The result IMHO is pretty much the same, but the iPad is mobile and can be used for much things more than the iPad-alike screen built fixed into the HPi.